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Card Sharks (1986)
This is chronicling the 1986-1989 version of Card Sharks. Game Format Main game Two contestants competed against each other on all versions of Card Sharks. Each contestant was assigned a row of five oversized playing cards. Each contestant had a standard 52-card deck; the ace ranked highest and the deuce (two) ranked lowest. The champion played the red cards on top, while the challenger played the blue cards on the bottom. In case of two new players, a coin toss was used to determine who played red and who played blue. Toss-up questions Control of the board was determined by asking a survey question similar to the surveys done on Family Feud. Questions were posed to 100 people of the same occupation, marital status, or demographic (ex: “We asked 100 teachers, ‘Has a student ever given you an apple?’ How many said yes?”). The contestant who received the question (with the red-card player, usually the champion, going first) then gave a guess as to how many people gave the answer that the host gave (and usually his/her reasoning, although this is not required). After hearing the guess, the opponent had to choose whether the correct number was higher or lower than that guess. Choosing correctly gave control of the board to the opponent; otherwise, the initial contestant gained control. The initial contestant would also gain control of the board if he/she correctly guessed the survey answer. An exact guess won a $500 bonus for the contestant; the contestant keeps it regardless of the game's outcome. Up to four (three in game two in the early part of the Rafferty version) toss-up questions were played per game. In addition to the regular 100-person survey questions, some questions on the Eubanks/Rafferty versions used one of the following formats as opposed to the straight 100-person survey. * 10 Studio Audience Members: Beginning on July 7, 1986 questions were asked about a panel of 10 audience members sharing a common profession or characteristic (mothers-to-be, nurses, students) who taped an entire week of shows (originally, five different poll groups were used per week). An exact guess by the contestant won $100, and the panel members each received $10. * Educated Guess: Introduced on October 6, 1986, and the only time non-survey questions were ever used on the program. Each question was general knowledge with a numerical answer ("In miles per hour, how fast is the fastest snake?", "How old is Bill Rafferty?"). Originally answers only ranged from 0-99 (the range of the readouts on the contestant podium). This changed in 1987 to questions with various ranges. To accommodate the change, values would be superimposed with on-screen graphics or written on cards by the contestants. An exact guess on this kind of questions also won a $500 bonus. Playing the Cards Beneath each contestant's row of cards was a moving bracket bearing the contestant's name which would mark one of the cards as the "base card". Each contestant's base card was the first card in the row of five. The winner of the question could choose to either play and keeping his/her base card, or have it replaced with another card from the top of the deck. The contestant then guessed whether the next (face-down) card in the row was "higher" or "lower"; if correct, he or she could continue to guess the next card after that and so on (if both cards were the same, the guess counted as incorrect). On an incorrect guess, the contestant loses his/her progress and returns to the base card with the other revealed cards being discarded and replaced by new face-down cards before the next question in the round. In this event, the opponent received a free chance to play his/her own row of cards but could not change the base card. Contestants could also choose to "freeze", thus making the last revealed card the new base card and preventing the opponent from receiving a free chance. If neither contestant guessed all the cards on his or her row correctly, another toss-up question was asked and the same procedures were followed until someone revealed all the cards in the row or the fourth question in the round was asked. In the final months of the NBC run, a $500 bonus was awarded for guessing correctly on all four cards in a single turn without freezing. $100 was awarded for each game won, with two games winning the match and the right to play the Money Cards bonus game. During most of the Rafferty version no money was awarded for winning a game or the match. Instead, several "prize cards" were shuffled into the deck consisting of trips (up to $6,000), furniture, appliances, and cash ($250, $500, $1,000, and $5,000; every amount except $500 was later removed). If one of those turned up during a player's turn, the name of the prize was placed on that player's side of the board adjacent to his/her row of cards and another card would be dealt which he/she had to call. Only the contestant who won the match claimed the prizes found. Sudden death The fourth question (third in the tiebreaker round) in each round was a "sudden death" question in which someone would win the game on the next turn of the cards. Whoever won control of the board had the opportunity to play the cards (and could change the base card if desired) or pass them to the opponent (who could not change the base card and had to successfully clear the remainder of the row). An incorrect guess at any point caused the opponent to win by default. Tiebreakers If the match was tied after two games, a tiebreaker game was played to determine the winner. Contestants played rows of three cards, not five: and three questions were asked, not four (two during one point in the '80s syndicated version), with the third being sudden death. Beginning on January 4, 1988, the tiebreaker was changed to one sudden-death question; this also determined the winner of the match on the finale of the Rafferty version, as well as the final match of that version's Young People's Week. In the one-question tiebreaker game, both base cards were revealed so the player could make an easier decision as to play his/her cards and change the base card or pass to the opponent, who was not able to change the base card. Money Cards The winner of the main game played the Money Cards bonus game for a chance to win additional money. The Money Cards board consisted of seven cards on three rows; three cards were dealt on the bottom two rows, and one card was dealt on the top row. On the NBC version, the winner's first base card to begin the bonus game was dealt from the deck after the seven cards were placed. On the CBS version, however, the first four cards were dealt on the bottom row, with the first card as the base card, followed by three on the middle row, and one on the top row (so in reality, this version dealt 8 cards out at the start instead of 7—11 if the three reserve change cards are included). In addition to guessing whether a card was higher or lower, the contestant had to wager money on that prediction. The contestant was given $200 to bet with and had to wager at least $50 (and in multiples of $50) on each card on the first two rows. The contestant won money for each correct guess and lost money on each incorrect guess. After completing the first row, or if the contestant "busted" (lost everything on that wager), the last card was moved onto the second row and the contestant was given an additional $200 (raised to $400 in 1986). The contestant had to play three more cards before reaching the last card on the top row, known as the "Big Bet". If a contestant busted prior to reaching the Big Bet, the game ended. Upon reaching the Big Bet, the contestant was required to wager at least half of their earnings; there was an occasional "25" or "75" at the end if a contestant had, at minimum, $50 or $150. The most a contestant could win was $32,000 but was never won though were wer some close calls in certain shows. The highest win on that version (and the overall record) was $29,000. Rule changes In the Eubanks/Rafferty versions, the contestant was given three opportunities to change a card by choosing one of three pre-dealt cards. Originally, a player could change more than one card on a row, and could even change more than once on the same card; this was later modified to allow the contestant to change only one card per line. Sequences of Top Prize Car games Starting on the episode aired September 29, 1986 on the Rafferty version and eventually becoming part of the Eubanks run, which began on October 27 of the same year, a second bonus round following the Money Cards was added to give players a chance to win a new car. Originally, the round was played using Jokers; the contestant earned one for winning the match and could win more if any of three additional Jokers that were in the Money Cards deck came up, which were set aside and replaced with the next card off the top of the deck. The contestant then placed the Joker(s) in a rack of seven numbered cards; if any of the chosen cards revealed "CAR" after it was turned over (the other cards read "NO" in much smaller lettering), the contestant won the car. The Jokers must be placed Joker side up; should the contestant place them face down, either the host would remind the contestant or turn the card over himself (sometimes with dealer assistance). During the special weeks when children played, the top prize was usually a trip to Hawaii or a prize package featuring a boat (with either "WIN" or "HAWAII" displayed on one of the cards). The children received two Jokers to start; this meant there were two more in the Money Cards deck, which were set aside and replaced with the next card off the top of the deck. On the last episode of the Rafferty version, all four Jokers were given to the final champion at the outset. Beginning on July 4, 1988 the car game was changed to use the audience-poll group. The question was played the same way it normally would during regular gameplay, with the contestant predicting how many of the poll group gave a certain answer. For the bonus round a prop with a dial was used, and the contestant moved the dial to lock in his/her guess. A correct guess won the car, and missing by one either way won $500 (except on the final episode when being one away also won the car or during "Young People's Week"). All other incorrect guesses won nothing more. Personnel *Host: Bob Eubanks (CBS); Bill Rafferty (Syndicated) *Announcer: Gene Wood, Bob Hilton, Charlie O'Donnell *Card Dealers: Lacey Pemberton, Suzanna Williams *Executive Producers: Jonathan Goodson, Chester Feldman *Producer: Mimi O’Brien *Director: Marc Breslow *Set Designer: Dennis Roof *Music: Edd Kalehoff Trivia When the 1986 show was in development, auditions were held for people to host the show. For daytime, Bruce Forsyth was originally considered to host the show but the job went to Bob Eubanks instead. For nighttime, Rich Fields (who later went on to become the announcer for The Price is Right from 2004 to 2010) was originally considered for the hosting position but was turned down in favor of Bill Rafferty instead. He announced the Gameshow Marathon equivalent in 2006. In addition, Bruce Forsyth at the time hosted the short-lived ABC daytime game show that's appropriately titled Bruce Forsyth's Hot Streak (a Reg Grundy produced show) in the same year. However, Forsyth hosted its British equivalent called Play Your Cards Right/Bruce Forsyth's Play Your Cards Right airing on ITV from 1980 until 1987 along with its revivals from 1994 until 1999 and from 2002 until 2003. Forsyth died on August 18, (or 18 August) 2017 due to bronchial pneumonia at the age of 89. This was Bob Eubanks' second Goodson-created game show he hosted, his first was the short-lived Trivia Trap for ABC Daytime in 1984. This was Bill Rafferty's first Goodson-created game show he hosted, his second and final game show was the equally short-lived 1987 NBC Daytime revival of Blockbusters where it had two solo players competing against each other instead of a solo player vs. a family pair. The car cue was originally used for the short-lived NBC daytime game show called The Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour hosted by Gene Rayburn and Jon "Bowzer" Bauman respectively from 1983 until 1984. It was also used as a car and showcase cue on The Price is Right as well. A revamp of the theme "Lottery" was used by WNEW-TV/WHDH-TV in Boston during the early 80s and late 90s as well as several local Illinois game shows, it can also be heard during the live stage show called The Price is Right Live!. The theme would also be heard on the short-lived British version of Price called The New Price is Right hosted by Bob Warman where it briefly ran on Sky from 1989 until 1990. The rainbow of cars graphic for the car game was also used on Classic Concentration when a contestant wins the bonus round of matching the names of cars. The idea for the "10 Studio Audience" members answering a question was carry over from the short-lived 1979 NBC daytime game show Mindreaders hosted by Dick Martin. This version (Eubanks) was later replaced by a revival of Now You See It hosted by Chuck Henry although this didn't last long either as it ran from April 3 until July 4, 1989 for four months. Merchandise A version was released for the Apple II seriesPackage for Card Sharks for the Apple IIVirtualApple.org: Card Sharks for the Apple II, Commodore 64[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5R7vocZAdc Let's Play Card Sharks for the C64], and IBM-compatible computers by Softie in 1988; although based on the Eubanks/Rafferty version, the host resembled Perry. The game used the single sudden-death question tiebreaker in the main game and the Joker car game following the Money Cards. If a contestant got an exact guess on a question in the main game, he or she won a $100 bonus, instead of the $500 bonus on the show. Also, unlike the show, the game did not use the educated guess or audience poll questions. 307-1.jpg $(KGrHqZHJE0FGWtqW)D!BRp+RUYo5w~~60_57.JPG 1283072284-00.jpg cardbox.gif 1203818244-00.jpg 1163122492-00.jpg Prior to this, it was also re-release in a Card Sharks/Classic Concentration double pack. mage2.jpg Online Game GSN/Game Show Network, the channel that reruns Card Sharks daily (minus the Bullard version) had their online version where you were allowed to play along with the show thru their website. I40_C.jpg Unreleased Game In the 80s, an NES (Nintendo Entertainment System) port based on the Eubanks/Rafferty version was going to be made and released by Gametek at the time. However, plans for it fell through later on. Card_Sharks_NES_Promo.png E97E9CD4-E6B0-CEBF-366AD63B27E23261.png Downloadable Game Curt King, 1987 Jeopardy! Teen Tournament participant, has his own downloadable Money Cards gameCrossbearer Software - Money Cards. CS32KWin.PNG|$32,000 win in the downloadable game, combining elements of the Perry and Eubanks eras, and using the red cards for the champion. The link to the download is here. moneycards2.JPG|Here's what you don't want: a BUST, and this one occurred before the Big Bet. This picture uses the blue cards for the challenger-turned-champion. Flash Game The people at FlashGames also had their own Money Cards game.FlashGames - Money Cards mc-cap2.gif|$16,000 and the Ace of Spades for the Big Bet. You know where this is gonna go, based on the version this game comes from. Note the blue cards, for the challenger-turned champion; returning champions always got red cards. (Note: When this game was released, it had MIN and MAX buttons for minimum wager and maximum wager; those have since been discontinued.) Mc-cap_$32,000_Win_in_Blue.jpg Mc-cap_$32,000_Win_in_Red.PNG Mc-Cap_$32,000_Win.jpg Card_Sharks_Money_Cards_Flash_Game_Boarder.png Photos Logos card_shark.jpg Red logo.png Press 48398827_2157327344484049_3199635766619668480_n.jpg CS3.png 104511889.jpg 41710793_2105143463035771_7736397021166174208_n.png CS4.png cardsharks2.jpg 56675152_2223308361219280_5528523534529200128_n.png CS5.png SHARKSCA.jpg 36380580_2035519096664875_6032887651541975040_n.jpg CS16.jpg CS19.jpg 10570314 1168284363183878 3183843724378692173 n.jpg Set Props Card Sharks 1980s Props.jpg Card Sharks 1980s Props 2.jpg Card Sharks 1980s Props 4.jpg Card_Sharks_1980s_Props_3.jpg Card_Sharks_Red_Back_Cards.jpg S-l1600 (8).jpg Crew Member Jacket CS_80s_Crew_Member_Jack.jpg Card_Sharks_80s_Crew_Member_Jacket_Logo.jpg Artwork cs-red2.png|Red card played by the champion cs-blue2.png|Blue card played by the challenger. acespades.png|Ace of spades with CS logo. Look at that big spade. Also, notice how the A's are a bit farther from the corners than the rest of the numbers on the cards. jackspades.png|Jack of spades. This Jack, however, is the only Jack in the deck holding a stick instead of the usual ax. Also, is that stick supposed to represent the scepter he holds up? queenspades.png|The Queen of Spades. This is perhaps the only Queen in the deck whose head is facing the other way. kingspades.png|The King of Spades. This design suits him quite well. jackhearts.png|The Jack of Hearts. The only Jack in the deck that suits him quite well. queenhearts.png|The Queen of Hearts. This design also suits her very well. kinghearts.png|The King of Hearts. This design is a no-no because the king should be holding a sword behind his head sideways. jackclubs.png|The Jack of Clubs. This jack is holding an ax instead of a long spear. queenclubs.png|The Queen of Clubs. This design suits her well. kingclubs.png|The King of Clubs. This design also suits him well. jackdiamonds.png|The Jack of Diamonds. That ax is a no-no for this Jack because he should be holding a sword downward. queendiamonds.png|The Queen of Diamonds. This design also suits her quite well. kingdiamonds.png|The King of Diamonds. This sword for that King is a no-no, because the King should be holding an ax. Also, this is the only king in the deck whose head is facing sideways. joker2.png|Joker card used in the car/Hawaii prize game after the Money Cards. win.png|The Win card used early in the car bonus game. car.png|Car prize card in the car bonus game. hawaii.png|Hawaii bonus card used during young people's week. no.png B67dd2ee8a81c72c7362b37dd59b341f 0 1.jpeg Prize Cards Artwork (Rafferty) Cs-250.png|$250 prize card Cs-500.png|$500 prize card Cs-1000.png|$1000 prize card Cs-5000.png|$5000 prize card Cs-australia.png|Australia prize card Cs-austria.png|Austria prize card Cs-babygrand.png|Baby grand piano prize card Cs-bahamas.png|Bahamas prize card Cs-barbeque.png|Barbeque prize card. Why couldn't it be spelled "Barbecue"? Cs-bedroom.png|Bedroom set prize card Cs-boat.png|Boat prize card Cs-brassbed.png|Brass bed prize card Cs-camcorder.png|Camcorder prize card Cs-chandelier.png|Chandelier prize card Cs-colortv.png|Color TV prize card Cs-computer.png|Computer prize card Cs-consoletv.png|Console TV prize card Cs-diamond.png|Diamond Jewelry prize card Cs-diningsuite.png|Dining Suite prize card Cs-elecguitar.png|Electronic Guitar prize card Cs-encyclo.png|Encyclopedia prize card Cs-exercise.png|Exercise Bike prize card Cs-exerequip.png|Exercise Equipment prize card Cs-hawaii.png|Hawaii prize card. Not to be confused with the Hawaii bonus card used in the Young People's weeks. Cs-hisherwatches.png|His & Her Watches prize card Cs-hongkong.png|Hong Kong prize card Cs-loweryorgan.png|It was supposed to be a "LOWREY" organ. Cs-mexico.png|Mexico City prize card Cs-microrange.png|Microwave Range prize card Cs-microwave.png|Microwave prize card. This was for the microwave oven itself. Cs-motorcycle.png|Motorcycle prize card. Cs-oakdaybed.png|Oak Day Bed prize card Cs-piano.png|Piano prize card. I'm sure this would be for the upright, or spinet pianos. Cs-pkeyboard.png|Piano keyboard prize card Cs-prize2.png|Generic prize card. Had this been used early in the syndicated run? Cs-pvallarta.png|Puerto Vallarta prize card Cs-refrig.png|Refrigerator prize card Cs-ring.png|Ring prize card Cs-riodejaneiro.png|Rio de Janeiro prize card Cs-silverserv.png|Silver Service prize card Cs-sofa.png|Sofa & Loveseat prize card Cs-spa.png|Spa prize card Cs-stereo.png|Stereo prize card Cs-tahiti.png|Tahiti prize card Cs-vcrtv.png|VCR & TV prize card Cs-victorian.png|Victorian Dolls prize card Cs-washdry.png|Washer & Dryer prize card Cs-gfatherclock.png|Grandfather Clock prize card Cs-switzerland.png|Switzerland prize card Cs-cordlessphone.png|Cordless Phone prize card Cs-diamondnecklace.png|Diamond Necklace prize card Cs-cruise.png|Cruise prize card Cs-alaska.png|Alaska prize card Cs-golfclubs.png|Golf Clubs prize card Cs-luggage.png|Luggage prize card Cs-portugal.png|Portugal prize card Cs-vidcam.png|Video Camera prize card. Isn't that the same as a camcorder? Cs-vcr.png|VCR prize card Press CS17.jpeg sharks.jpg 0aaCardSharks86.jpg Bobs.jpg Trade Ads CS6.png $(KGrHqV,!hcFCN!jUoFOBQtI!FY01!~~60 57.JPG CS'86 1.jpg CS'86 2.jpg Card_Sharks_'86_ad.jpg CSAD1986.png CSAD19861.png BC_1986_02_10_OCR_Page_0043_page_001.jpg CSAD19862.png Card_Sharks_Albany.jpg Card_Sharks_Chicago.jpg Card_Sharks_Cincinnati.jpg CSAD19863.png Card_Sharks_Indianapolis.jpg Card_Sharks_Philadelphia.jpg Card_Sharks_Pittsburgh.jpg Card_Sharks_Raleigh-Durham.jpg CSAD19865.png $T2eC16R,!zQE9s3ssOOGBRg(+prW5!~~60 57.jpg Card Sharks 1st Year Strip.jpg Tickets CS8.png CS7.png Card Sharks (February 27, 1987).png Card Sharks (February 28, 1987).png Card Sharks (March 01, 1987).png Card Sharks (November 15, 1987).jpg Card Sharks (April 16, 1988).jpg Screencaps 1986-89 Eubanks era csbob.jpg csdealers.jpg CSBoard2.jpg csquestion.jpg cscontestants.jpg CSPlayers2.jpg csedguess.jpg cschange.jpg CSMoneyCards2.jpg csmcards2.jpg cscargame.jpg cs_car.jpg csten.jpg 1986-87 Rafferty era Cscar.jpg Csdealer.jpg Csfull.jpg Cspodium.jpg Csturn.jpg Ticket Plug Young_Contestant_Card_Sharks_Ticket_Plug_Mistake.jpg Card Sharks in San Diego Contestant Plug.jpg Episode Status See Also: Card Sharks (1986)/Episode Guide This series exists in its entirety, and has aired on GSN and Buzzr (Both Eubanks and Rafferty respectively) at various times. See Also Card Sharks Card Sharks (1996 pilot) Card Sharks (2001) Card Sharks (2019) Video Links Card Sharks (Eubanks) @ Jay Anton Card Sharks (Rafferty) info page A Blog about Card Sharks (1986-89) @ Best of the 80s Card Sharks (Eubanks) @ Game Show Galaxy (via Internet Archive) References Category:Card Sharks Category:Game Shows A-M Category:CBS Daytime Category:Syndicated Category:1986 Premiere Category:1987 Ending Category:1989 Ending